'O thou who hast set thy face towards the splendors of My Countenance!
Vague fancies have encompassed the dwellers of the earth
Vain imaginings have withheld them
Among them are those who have said:
Verily, the Inevitable is come,
The Plain is disclosed,
Earthquakes have broken loose,
The trumpet asketh:
Darkness hath been chased away
The breeze of the All-Merciful hath wafted,
Thus hath the decree been fulfilled by God,
Paradise is decked with mystic roses,
The doubters have perished,
Blessed art thou,
Commit it to memory,
We, verily, hear thy praise of this Cause,
My glory be upon thee
Among others, these perspicuous verses have,
in answer to certain individuals,
been sent down from the Kingdom of Divine knowledge:
and debarred them from turning towards the Horizon of Certitude,
and its brightness, and its manifestations, and its lights.
from Him Who is the Self-Subsisting.
They speak as prompted by their own caprices,
and understand not.
"Have the verses been sent down?"
Say:
"Hath the Hour come?"
"Yea, by Him Who is the Lord of the heavens!"
"Nay, more;
"Hath the Catastrophe come to pass?"
it hath passed,
Say:
by Him Who is the Revealer of clear tokens!
and He the True One,
hath appeared with proof and testimony.
and mankind is sore vexed and fearful.
and the tribes have lamented, for fear of God,
the Lord of Strength, the All-Compelling."
"The stunning trumpet-blast
hath been loudly raised,
and the Day is God's, the One, the Unconstrained."Say:
"Is the Resurrection come?"
"Yea by the Lord of Lords!"
"Nay, more;
"Seest thou men laid low?"
He Who is the Self-Subsisting hath appeared
with the Kingdom of His signs.""Yea by my Lord, the Exalted the Most High!"
"Have the tree stumps been uprooted?"
"Yea, more;
They say:
the mountains have been scattered in dust;
by Him the Lord of attributes!
"Where is Paradise, and where is Hell?"
Say:
They say:
"The one is reunion with Me;
the other thine own self,
O thou who dost associate a partner with God and doubtest."
"We see not the Balance."Say:
"Have the stars fallen?"
"Surely, by my Lord, the God of Mercy!
None can see it
except such as are endued with insight."Say:
"Yea, when He Who is the Self-Subsisting
dwelt in the Land of Mystery.
Take heed, ye who are endued with discernment!"All the signs appeared
They that have gone astray have said:
when We drew forth the Hand of Power
from the bosom of majesty and might.
Verily, the Crier hath cried out,
when the promised time came,
and they that have recognized the splendors of Sinai
have swooned away in the wilderness of hesitation,
before the awful majesty of the Lord,
the Lord of creation.
"Hath the Bugle been sounded?"
"Yea, by the King of Revelation!
when He mounted the throne of His Name,
the All-Merciful."
by the dawning-light of the mercy of thy Lord,
the Source of all light.
and the souls have been quickened
in the tombs of their bodies.
the Mighty, the Beneficent.
"When were the heavens cleft asunder?"Say:
Among the heedless is he who rubbeth his eyes,
"While ye lay in the graves
of waywardness and error."
and looketh to the right and to the left.Say:
And among them is he who saith:
"Blinded art thou.
No refuge hast thou to flee to."
"Have men been gathered together?"Say:
And among them is he who saith:
"Yea, by My Lord!
whilst thou didst lie in the cradle of idle fancies."
"Hath the Book been sent down
through the power of the true Faith?"Say:
And among them is he who saith:
"The true Faith itself is astounded.
Fear ye, O ye men of understanding heart!"
"Have I been assembled with others, blind?Say:
"Yea, by Him that rideth upon the clouds!"
Say:
and hell hath been made to blaze
with the fire of the impious.
"The light hath shone forth
The Tablet is ended,
from the horizon of Revelation,
and the whole earth hath been illumined
at the coming of Him
Who is the Lord of the Day of the Covenant!"
whilst he that turned,
guided by the light of assurance,
unto the Dayspring of Certitude hath prospered.
who hast fixed thy gaze upon Me,
for this Tablet which hath been sent down for thee -
a Tablet which causeth the souls of men to soar.
and recite it.
By My Life!
It is a door to the mercy of thy Lord.
Well is it with him that reciteth it
at eventide and at dawn.
through which
the mountain of knowledge was crushed,
and men's feet have slipped.
and upon whosoever hath turned unto the Almighty,
the All-Bounteous.
but the theme is unexhausted.
Be patient, for thy Lord is Patient.